


5 Times Peter almost died and the One Time He Actually Did

by IsntThatSplendid



Category: Homecoming - Fandom, Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man - Fandom, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017)
Genre: Angst, Comforting Tony, Death, Fighting, Guilty Tony, Hurt Peter, Hurt/Comfort, Iron Man - Freeform, Karen - Freeform, M/M, Near Death Experience, Peter Parker - Freeform, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Protective Tony, Slight OOC, Spidey, Suit, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Violence, Whump, first fic, spider-man homecoming - Freeform, spiderman - Freeform, tony stark - Freeform, very short fic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-10
Updated: 2017-12-30
Packaged: 2018-12-13 17:07:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 7
Words: 11,241
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11764503
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IsntThatSplendid/pseuds/IsntThatSplendid
Summary: Peter curled in on himself and held a hand over his mouth as the tears began to roll down his face, leaving clean lines over his ash covered cheeks. He was going to die here. No one to save him.





	1. Smoked Out

**Author's Note:**

> Hey! :D this is my first fic EVER so it would be great if you left some feedback. It's pretty short, but I hope you enjoy.

Life was SO boring.

Peter Parker's math teacher was drabbling on again about the most boring topic... Couldn't the teacher understand that the class understood him the first 300 times he explained this shit? Peter tilted his head to the side and looked out the window. I'm Spider-Man, he thought. I should be out there right now saving lives, not sitting in here daydreaming about the perfect hamburger while Mr. Kenzy drags on about his stupid equations.

Screw it. Peter would literally die of boredom if he sat there any longer so without asking for permission, he left the class and didn't turn back.

-

"Hey Karen, any bad guys around?" Peter asked as he fumbled to take off his sweater and jeans, to reveal his suit, in a back alley.

"Two armed men robbing a shop two streets away." Karen reported back. 

Peter almost whooped with joy. "Finally, some fun."

"Be careful Peter. Remember, Mr. Stark is my first contact to call if you get into any trouble."

"Damn it Karen, I won't get into any trouble. I'm not a kid. I'll be fine," Peter pulled on his mask and dumped his bag and clothes in a corner and started down the road.

Karen notified Peter of his arrival at the scene once he made it, although he definitely did not need to be told. In front of him was a smashed up corner shop with fire licking up the side of the building and one man cowering on the floor with a shotgun pointed at his temple, three dead customers and the second attacker poised ready to shoot anyone who came to interrupt. Well, almost anyone.

"Hey guys!" Peter said cheerily as he swung in from a back door. Both men looked up from what they were doing. Peter knocked the first guy onto the floor as he landed. "Oops, didn't see you there." He snatched the gun from his hands: luckily he hadn't got around to actually stealing any money yet, and brought it down on the man's, temple knocking him out cold. "One down, one to go." Peter counted casually.

"Spider-Man." The second guy said as he rose to his feet - he was a good few inches taller than Peter and strongly built, obviously not to mention the gun in his arms and knife in his pocket.

"That's me." Peter stepped closer, shot a web at his gun and yanked him closer, holding out his hand to shake. "And you are?" Before the thug could answer Peter used his free hand to flip him over his back, landing him squirming on the floor.

"You shouldn't have done that." The man said in between breaths.

"And why is that? What are you gonna do, shoot me?" Peter joked. "Well, sorry but-" Peter stopped talking immediately. Something was wrong. He looked down to see a red stain growing on his lower stomach.

"Oh shit." Peter stumbled backwards into a table, knocking it over and collapsed on the floor. His stomach seized up in pain as he attempted to lift himself up.

"You know, you're really gonna have to try harder than that." Peter tested, his voice hoarse. Turns out it was a mistake, because two more bullets found their way into his body - one on his left shoulder and one just beneath his heart. He cried out in pain. Too close. Not enough time to mess around. Peter shot webs at the thug to keep him pinned to the ground, and stumbled out of the shop, only to straight away fall to his knees on top of the shattered glass of the windows.

"Karen, how much... how much t-time do I have?" Peter stammered, knowing he had to get to safety, fast. The fire from outside the building was growing by the second and the smokey air was making it increasingly hard to breathe. Not to mention the three bullet holes he now had in his abdomen.

"Approximately 10 minutes until extreme blood loss and possible fatality." Karen replied.

"Jeez thanks Karen, way to make me feel better." Peter scrambled to his feet and ignoring the spots forming in his vision and the almost unbearable pain in his stomach, and tried to walk further.

"Peter, you should get out of the smoke before it causes you further damage." Karen advised.

"Yeah, no shit, Karen, im trying." Peter coughed and inhaled sharply, then coughed again. Damn it hurt... He knew she was right though. If he didn't get himself out of the smoke, gunshot wounds or not, he was causing himself further damage. He also knew he was stupid for thinking he could walk - he fell to the floor, landing on a cluster of shards of glass digging into his back.

"Approximately 7 minutes until extreme blood loss and possible fatality."

"Yep, got it the first time." Peter crawled on his hands and knees away from the building, attempting to find clear air. At least then he could breathe and assess the damage he had taken. Suddenly something exploded behind him sending him flying into a wall. He screamed as his back slammed against it and he dropped to the ground. The collision had made all of his wounds feel 10 times worse. More and more hot blood seeped from the holes on his chest... Peter didn't think his enhanced healing would have his back this time. Everything was spinning. He couldn't breathe. He couldn't feel. He was numb.

Peter rolled onto his back and stared at the grey clouds of smoke swarming around him, filling his nostrils, his mouth, his ears... his chest burst and he coughed violently, gasping for air although the only thing he breathed in was smoke and ash. He kept coughing until he was sure he was coughing up blood - the pain had increased so much that he was only half conscious. Peter curled in on himself and held a hand over his mouth as the tears began to roll down his cheeks, leaving clean lines over his ash covered cheeks. He was going to die here. No one to save him. Come to think of it... shouldn't the cops be here? At least the fire people. Fire people? Fire brigade. Haha. Funny... the word Brigade sounds like parade.. so happy and fun. But this is what it's come to.

A coughing fit struck the boy again, wracking his small but muscular frame with coughs and splutters. He pulled off his mask, exposing him to the burning air and the smell of death around him. Oh god. This was it.

Another spike of pain hit Peter and he cried out in pain, closing his hands into fists and clenching his teeth. So close now... he cracked open his eyes one last time to see something colourful soaring through the air towards him. An angel?

Everything went black.

-

Tony Stark swept into the crime scene. He scanned the area, a worry-stricken expression on his face. He had received an automated call from 'Karen' warning him that Peter was in danger and had tracked him here - from what he could see on his tracking device, Peter should be right here.

Tony walked through the shop's back door and found a criminal pinned to the ground by what could only be Spider-Man's webs. That guy was obviously whoever Peter was off trying to stop, and he was also obviously dead. Iron Man prayed that Peter was luckier, although it was hard to say in this thick smoke. At the same time as scanning the area for any sign of his Intern, Tony called for backup including Happy, explaining the scene and situation. 

A flash of red and blue caught Tony's eye and he spun around to see Peter lying limp in a corner. He rushed towards him and without second thought picked the boy up bridal style and immediately took off into the sky. Once he was satisfied with how far from the smoke they were, Tony landed on a flat roof and lay Peter carefully on the tarmac.

"FRIDAY, run vitals." Iron Man ordered as he stepped out of the suit. 

"Peter appears to be suffering from multiple broken bones, several gunshot wounds leading to blood loss and severely damaged lungs from exposure to smoke and/or chemicals." The results came back. Shit...

"Kid? Can you hear me?" Worry knitted his every word. "Peter?"

Tony pulled Peter's mask off revealing his pail face. He raised a shaky hand to take the Spider-Man's pulse. There was none.

"No. No, no no no... come on kid you're not giving up on me now." He began doing compressions on the boy's chest, hearing his ribs crack and his hands coming back bloodied from the gunshot wounds. Damn it. This stupid kid was his responsibility and for whatever reason, Tony cared about him. He placed his thumb under Peter's chin and tilted his head up, opening his mouth slightly and breathing oxygen into his smoke-filled lungs. The pressure he applied to the kid's chest and breaths of life into his lungs became more desperate as no response came.

Just as Tony was about to give up, a wheeze and light crackling sound came from Peter's general direction, and suddenly he jolted upright, spluttering and gasping for air.

"Hey, it's okay, it's okay." Tony rubbed comforting circles on the kid's back as he regained consciousness. Peter looked up at Tony with tears pricking the corners of his eyes, his chest heaving and a weak, lifeless look in his eyes. Tony placed a reassuring hand on Peter's chest and pulled the kid in close to him. He went limp in Tony's arms, still extremely weak, and his head flopped back. Now that he was breathing, although not perfectly, Tony Stark still had to get him to a medic for the other damage done. His suit closing around him, he carefully scooped the boy up from the ground and took off into the early evening sky.

-  
Peter woke up to the feeling of soft hospital sheets and a calloused hand gently brushing his hair out of his eyes. He frowned and opened his eyes, immediately blinded by the white hospital light.

"M-mr Stark?" His voice came out small and quiet.

"You with us?" Tony pulled his chair closer to the hospital bed. Peter didn't answer.

"It sure is nice of you to join me after 8 hours." Tony smiled. Peter looked confused but of course explanations would have to wait for later. "How are you feeling?"

"Great - I think I can come home right away." Peter lied as he tried to push himself into a sitting position, only resulting in a shot of pain in his chest. Tony lowered him back down and raised an eyebrow.

"How do you feel, Peter? Really." Tony questioned. 

"Like I've been run over by a truck 20 times consecutively." 

"I can only imagine."

"So... what exactly happened?" Peter asked.

"I'll explain later. Just rest now, okay? You did a great job. I'm proud of you, kid." Tony got up and left the room and Peter watched him go.

Tony's phone rang. Happy.

"Hey Tony," Happy said, "how's the kid holding up?" 

"Pretty good considering what he's been through. Is everything okay?"

"Yes... one question. When you called me yesterday when you went to get Peter, you said there were two guys, right? Both dead and Peter had them tied up."

"Yes, I did. Happy are you sure everything is ok?"

"Well, one of the guys is gone." Happy said cautiously.

"What?" Tony was shocked. "I was certain he was dead." There was no way he could have survived in the centre of that fire. He glanced at the sleeping Peter through the glass of the hospital dorm door.

"Clearly not. And from what I gather, considering his patterns and how he works... his next in line to die will be Peter."

-

 

-


	2. Nightmares

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The guy who survived the fire in chapter 1 pays Peter a visit.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by a request in the comments of chapter one from someone called 'J'. Thanks for the suggestion!  
> ~And thank you so much for all for reading, and for your comments and feedback! I've read them all and it means so much to me. Here's the second chapter, and there will be more coming!

It was three days after Peter had come home from the hospital, after being trapped in the fire and shot at. Fun. If it wasn't for his fast healing, he'd have been in there for a hell of a lot longer. 

He was sitting on his bed flicking through the messages and notifications he missed while he was gone.

MJ: 2:50PM - Math homework answers. Now.

AUNT MAY: 3:40PM - Peter, when will you be home? I'm making pasta.

AUNT MAY: 3:43PM - Never mind, Mr. Stark told me you're staying overnight for the internship. Good luck sweetie xx

NED - 3:56PM - peter, MJ is annoying me saying you're ignoring her can u please just tell her the math homework

NED: 4:00PM - peter 

NED: 4:00PM - peter

NED: 4:01PM - peterrrrr

MR. STARK: 4:10PM - Hey kid. If you could give me a call whenever you can, that'd be great. I'd like to talk through some suit upgrades with you.

NED: 4:15PM - omg peter r you dead i'm worried

Peter closed his phone, smiling lightly at Ned's concern. He had good people around him. He was safe. Shame he missed Aunt May's pasta though... that was a real hit. The teenager flopped back onto his bed and closed his eyes.

-

Peter woke up and his room was dark. What time was it? He didn't remember falling asleep. Slipping his legs over the edge of the bed, he started towards the door when he was suddenly overwhelmed by a sharp pain in his side. He dropped to the floor clutching his ribs.

"Peter Parker." A familiar voice mocked from somewhere in his room.

"H-hello?" Peter's voice sounded shaky.

"I warned you, Peter. You shouldn't have done that."

A figure leaped out of the shadows at him.

"No!"

-

Peter jolted awake, t-shirt soaked with sweat and chest rising and falling extremely fast - he could hear his heartbeat. Was that a nightmare? He never usually had nightmares. Although in his experience as Spider-Man, he had never been in as much trouble as he had the other day in the corner shop. It wasn't surprising that he was slightly disturbed.

He opened his phone and re-read that text he received a few days ago from Mr. Stark.

MR. STARK: 4:10PM - Hey kid. If you could give me a call whenever you can, that'd be great. I'd like to talk through some suit upgrades with you.

Peter considered it for a while. He couldn't picture sleeping again for at least another 3000 years, and it wasn't too late to take Tony up on that offer. Also... being shot three times in the chest had left some holes in his suit, so he could do with patching those up.

-

He arrived at the tower without calling in advance, and knocked lightly on Tony's door. He was still pretty shaken up from that nightmare, and there was a strange feeling hanging in the air - almost like suspense. Like someone was watching him. Like something was just waiting to happen.

The door clicked open and Peter jumped. A tired looking Tony ushered him in.

"Everything ok kid?" He said groggily. 

"Yeah. Sorry if I woke you... I probably should have called before I just turned up." Peter laughed nervously. "I was just wondering about that suit upgrade you mentioned? I couldn't sleep a-and I just thought maybe... never mind. It was probably a bad idea. I was being selfish-"

"Don't be silly. Take a seat and we'll see what we can do."

Honestly, for the first time in a long time, Peter felt really safe. Sitting on Mr. Stark's sofa, talking through upgrade options. However, despite the current comfort... the boy still couldn't shake the weird, unsettling feeling of being watched.

"Peter?" Tony waved a hand in front of his face. "You good? You seem kind of... spacey,"

"Yeah. I'm fine."

They began talking over ideas while Tony started to sew up the bullet holes in the suit. After about thirty minutes of silent working, Peter spoke up.

"Hey... could I, uh, have a glass of water?" 

"Sure."

As soon as Tony left the room and Peter was by himself in the room, the creeping feeling of not being alone came back. Trying to shake it off, he stood up to stretch his legs and walked around the room.

"Hello, Peter."

Peter jumped around and gaped when he saw who stood behind him.

"What the..."

"I know, right?" The man sniggered.

"But you died, you must have." Peter stuttered.

"Well, it looks like I didn't, right?" The man who had shot him in the burning shop grinned at him, unblinking. There was a few seconds of silence until Peter dived over the sofa and grabbed a vase.

The man leaped into action and swung a punch towards Peter's face. He dodged it and smashed the vase over the thug's head, cutting his hands and scattering glass everywhere. The thug was stunned for a second, but not long enough. He swung a second punch and hit Peter square in the jaw. Seeing stars, the kid stumbled backwards and tried to throw a few punches of his own, but missed, and the man grabbed both of his wrists and pinned him against the wall.

"P-please, I didn't even want to hurt you-"

"Shut up." He dug his fingernails into Peter's wrists, watching tiny beads of blood appear and run down his arms. Peter whimpered as the man let go and switched to fully picking Peter up and throwing him across the room. He smashed a picture hanging on the wall and landed in a heap. Why couldn't he fight this guy? Why hadn't Tony heard them?

"To-" Peter began to call for Tony but the man kicked him him in the stomach, cutting his breath off and winding him. Oh god. Why does this happen? Did Peter do something to ask for it without realising? Or was this just another nightmare? Was Peter just asleep on Tony's couch dreaming this awful moment?

"No dumbass. This is real life."

He had said that out loud?? He was starting to give up and it was about time Tony came in.

The thug suddenly grabbed Peter by the throat and forced him to look him in the eye. Peter had a real habit of getting suffocated at the moment... and it was not fun.

"Hey kiddo. Did you think you would get away with trying to kill me just like that?" He was laughing. This guy was a psycho.

He tightened his grip on Peter's neck... the boy scratched at his hands, trying anything to get him the hell off him. His breath was coming out in tiny gasps and whines and everything around him was becoming fuzzy. This guy had come in here and trashed Tony's apartment and now was killing Peter on his floor. Mr. Stark didn't deserve this. Wait... there was two guys. What if the other guy had got Tony? Oh god. This was all Peter's fault. He had dragged himself here in the first place. He had asked for a stupid glass of water...

No air was making its way to Peter's lungs any more and his defence was becoming weaker and weaker, his eyes slowly closing. His body was spasming under the man's tight grip and he could no longer feel his fingers. Peter wheezed Tony's name one last time before his arms dropped to his sides and the world went blank.

-

While pouring Peter a glass of water, Tony had dropped a cup on the floor and it had shattered. He was so tired he couldn't even pour a damn drink. After cleaning the glass up, he filled a new one with clear, not to mention expensive, water and carried it in.

"Sorry that took so long, I-" Tony stopped talking as he saw the smashed vase on the floor and broken picture hanging lopsided on the wall. What the... And where was Peter? He placed the glass on a table and circled the room. He halted immediately in his tracks as he saw Peter's sneaker and the end of his jeans poking around from the back of the sofa. Tony's heart sank and he walked cautiously over to where Peter lay in a crumpled heap, eyes cracked open slightly.

"Jesus! Peter?" Mr. Stark was at the boy's side in a second, checking for a pulse and at the same time seeing the finger-shaped bruises on Peter's neck. He had a pulse, but it was almost undetectable. Someone had come in and attacked him while he had been busy pouring a drink. And the sounds of the fight were muffled from Tony dropping the glass like a clumsy idiot... he couldn't believe himself. He had left the kid in here for less than 15 minutes and someone had come in to attack him.

Then he remembered his phone call with Happy from yesterday.

""From what I gather, considering his patterns and how he works... his next in line to die will be Peter"". Happy had said, regarding the man from the crime scene a few nights before. Of course.

Tony returned his focus to the boy lying in front of him. He was beaten up pretty badly, Tony felt his side tenderly and straight away noticed a couple of broken ribs and blood seeping through the kid's shirt. He'd only just been patched up in the hospital.

He scooped Peter up and carried him over to the sofa, where he lay him down carefully and crouched next to his head. He stroked the hair out of the kid's eyes and tapped his cheek. Of course there was no response. He was deeply unconscious and was lucky he had even survived that - the attacker must have left as soon as he finished with Peter. It made Tony's heart ache to think that only one room away, the kid that he was supposed to protect, was being hurt like this. To help Peter breathe more easily and hopefully get him to regain consciousness a little faster, Tony tipped his head back and opened his mouth slightly, propping a pillow behind his head. There was nothing else he could do except wait. He'd assess the rest of the damage when the boy woke up.

-

"Help! Help me!" Tony could vaguely hear Peter's desperate voice and sat upright. Everything was dark, but when he switched on the light he could see Peter on the ground surrounded by shards of glass, a man straddling him, knees pinning his wrists onto the ground and strangling him.

"Peter!" Tony yelled and tried to run to him, but found he couldn't. It was as if there was a glass wall in front of him. He banged on the glass but couldn't break through; he was left to watch the horrifying scene in front of him. He saw as Peter tried to get the man off him but failed, he saw as Peter choked and gasped for air, tears and sobs wracking his small frame, he saw as Peter slowly grew weaker by the second until he blacked out with his eyes still a tiny crack open. He saw as Peter went limp under the man's grip. He watched the boy he needed to protect at all costs have the life drained from him, and he couldn't even save him.

-

Tony woke up with a shout. He was soaked in sweat and was breathing heavily. He must have fallen asleep - he was on the floor by the sofa that Peter lay on... Peter. Mr. Stark stood up and looked at the boy... he was still there. He looked so small and innocent. Soundly asleep. Just a nightmare. Just a nightmare. Just a nightmare.

-

"Mr. Stark?"

Tony's eyes cracked open. Shit. He had fallen asleep again.

"Kid??"

"I'm fine, I'm fine." Peter reassured him, his voice sounding hoarse.

"Peter... I am SO sorry." Tony sat up and levelled with the boy. He gripped his shoulders firmly and looked him in the eye. "Now. We need to look at your injuries, okay?"

For the next couple of hours, the two worked on Peter's cuts and bruises, replacing his broken ribs and covering up the bruises on his neck with makeup. The injuries the kid suffered turned out to be not as bad as Tony originally expected, which was a relief, but it didn't stop the worry that filled Mr. Stark's eyes when Peter flinched or made a noise of pain while fixing him up.

After that they finished sewing Peter's suit and upgraded its protection - in case Peter ever came into contact with a gun again. He also enhanced the automated calling system: if Peter was to come into any immediate danger whatsoever, 'Karen' was to notify Tony straight away. 

Peter left later that evening.

"Thanks Mr. Stark." He smiled and turned to the door.

"Kid, wait-" Tony cupped Peter's cheek in his hand, "I won't let this happen again, okay? I promise."

And with that, Peter was gone. Tony made sure Aunt May knew everything was okay, and slowly began to clean up the mess on the floor. Peter changed into his suit in an alley, and swung the rest of the way home.

The two of them would no longer have to face their nightmares alone. At last, everything seemed peaceful.

But would this 'peace' really last?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'd love to hear some more of you guy's ideas, so let me know! Thanks again for reading and I hope you enjoyed this chapter.  
> :D


	3. Drowned Apologies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vulture pays a visit to Peter's school, to try and kill the kid himself. Will Mr. Stark get there in time?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's chapter 3! This is quite a sad chapter, so prepare yourself.  
> ~And again, thank you all so much for reading! Be sure to leave suggestions and comments!

Peter Parker sprang out of bed the next morning.

He felt strangely good - healthy, and happy... it was weird, he hadn't felt this cheerful in ages. As he shouted goodbye to Aunt May and slung his school bag over his shoulder, he didn't bother to check his missed messages - most of them would be Ned, and he was seeing him today at school anyway. 

-

"Peter!" Ned shouted from across the hall.

"Hey, buddy." Peter walked over to him and they did their handshake.

"Man, you weren't answering your messages and I thought - I thought you were dead! I thought you might've been dropped in a lake again, or something, and someone had got you... oh and MJ was bugging me about the stupid math homework and no one even listens to Mr. Kenzy and-"

"Woah slow down. Everything's fine. I'm fine. Now we should get to class, right?" Peter replied cheerfully.

The next hour went about the same as usual - Flash throwing screwed up paper at the back of Peter's head and laughing, MJ showing him her drawings of him looking sad and bored. Their English teacher talking about the meaning behind a bunch of words that Peter had never even heard.

"Mr. Parker!" 

"Y-yes, Mrs. Daily?" Peter must have fallen asleep. Damn it... why couldn't it just be lunch break already? He wanted to catch up with Ned properly and tell him about what had happened at Mr. Stark's house the night before.

"Can you please explain the meaning of the word-"

"OUCH!" Peter cried, looking around. That piece of paper Flash threw at him was really hard! "What the hell, Flash?"

"I didn't do anything!"

"Of course you did, you've been throwing paper at me all lesson and it's seriously pissing me off now." Flash looked at him, confused. What the hell? Why would he throw it THAT hard? Peter rubbed the back of his neck where the paper hit him. It was bleeding.

"Mr. Parker - I can confirm to you that I did not see Mr. Thompson over there throw anything at you. Now can you please tell us the-"

"Gotta go," Peter grabbed his bag and dashed out of the classroom into the toilets. He turned awkwardly in the mirror trying to look at the cut on his neck. "Flash I swear to god," Peter mumbled under his breath as a silent threat. If Flash Thompson new he was Spider-Man, he wouldn't dare lay a finger on him.

Suddenly a spike of pain came from the back of his neck. It was so weird - it was like the paper was literally lodged inside his neck... and was that a beeping sound? Oh no. Peter's eyes grew wide as he suddenly realised - it wasn't Flash throwing paper... someone had shot him through the window with a dart. Or something. Something that stuck in his neck and was making a sound. Was it a bomb? A tracker? Who had the gear good enough to shoot a hole through the window without anyone noticing? Who needed to track Peter by shooting him in the damn neck?

Oh.

Vulture landed outside the toilets, blocking Peter's exit. He had been right, it was a tracker.

"What do you want?" Peter sighed.

"You."

"Why? I helped you. I SAVED you. What the hell do you need me for?" Peter's patience was really wearing thin now. He could hear his English teacher's footsteps in the corridor. She was coming to find him... despite how much Peter hated her lessons, he couldn't get Vulture kill her just for being a witness. Lucky Peter wore his suit underneath his clothes, as he shot a web at Vultures chest and pulled him into the room, then shut the door behind him.

"I-I mean how did you even get in here? You're a giant metal bird man with 7 foot long wings and glowing green eyes... did seriously no one ask what you're doing?"

Vulture just started. Then in the blink of an eye he swept a giant wing across the floor, knocking Peter off his feet and before he could knock him down again, the kid smashed the window behind him and pulled himself through it. Luckily he was small enough to fit through - Vulture wouldn't make it. When on the other side, he ducked behind a bush and dumped his clothes and bag in a corner. He really hoped no one saw that or he was screwed.

Peter shot multiple webs across the school until he took an emergency stop outside Ned's class and waved aggressively outside the door. Ned looked like he was about to fall asleep - damn it, why were all the classes so boring?! Peter could hear the heavy metal footsteps of Vulture on the ground getting closer - he had to hurry.

"Sorry to interrupt guys," Spider-Man said as he burst through the door and shot a web at Ned's chest and pulled him out the class. The students seemed to wake up for a second. Something interesting had finally happened.

"Ned, I need you in the computer room. Now."

Ned looked stunned.

"Now!"

"O-o-okay Spider-Man, I'm on it."

Just as Vulture turned the corner Peter threw himself out of another window and swung out onto the roof. Unfortunately it wouldn't be very easy to get away from this guy - he was literally a bird. As Peter stopped to catch his breath, Vulture rose from the other side of the roof, wings spread out showing their full length. Damn. He was pretty majestic when you thought about it.

Peter dodged an attack, then another. Then shot three webs at his face, pinning his wings onto the ground. That would do for now.

"Peter, Peter do you copy?" Ned's voice came through into the suit.

"Yes. We're dealing with Vulture again. That bird guy, remember? With the alien tech? I have to warn Mr. Stark and I can't do that at this moment because I'm kind of in a fight." Vulture broke one wing free and Peter shot it down again. "I need you to tell me Mr. Stark's location right now.

"Can't you do that? You know with your suit and stuff-"

"Ned just do it!"

"Well won't he just be at the Avenger House?"

"No, Ned, he could be anywhere. And it's not called the 'Avenger House'. Now could you please just LOOK UP HIS LOCATION!"

"O-ok." And after a few seconds, "Tony Stark's location is at the Avenger House."

"Goddamn it Ned." Peter sighed as he swung down the streets. "Okay thanks. That's all I needed you for and I'm disconnecting no-" Peter was cut off as Vulture swept around a corner and cut Peter's web, making him fall to the ground with a shout. Why here? A small crowd gathered around them as Vulture picked Peter off the ground with his talons and flew into the air. 

"Peter what's happening?" Ned sounded worried.

"N-nothing! I'm great!" Peter felt his stomach turn as Vulture spun around a corner and lifted him higher and higher.

"You don't sound great."

"I'm good... the air is just a bit thin up here, y'know?"

"Wait what do you mean 'up here'? Peter do I need to call Aunt May?"

"NO! No please don't. Ned I'm disconnecting now, okay?"

"Wait-" but Peter was gone. What if he was in trouble? Ned decided to stay in the computer room and if he had to use his excuse of 'watching porn' to get away with looking out for his best friend again, he would do it.

Peter began to feel lightheaded as Vulture flew higher and higher above the city. Was he going to drop him again? At least last time it was in a lake... but over the city? He would certainly die.

"Peter, you seem to be in an area very high up with little oxygen. Initiating automatic oxygen tank." Karen said as air was breathed into Peter's lungs through the suit.

"Woah! I didn't know that could happ-" Suddenly Peter was falling.

"See you later, kid." Vulture sneered and flew away.

Peter was spinning as he fell and was getting dizzier by the second. Why was he always getting himself into trouble? He really hoped Karen didn't call Mr. Stark-

"Calling Mr. Stark".

"No! Karen what the hell?"

Oh god. Mr. Stark would be so annoyed that he was always having to come out and save a stupid teenager's ass all the time. As Peter kept spinning, he closed his eyes. He felt sick. He was plummeting towards the coast... he would land there, like a splatted vegetable, in front of everyone enjoying their weekend on the beach. He would be humiliated.

Peter didn't see the airplane underneath him for some reason, so when he smacked into the cold metal surface he was knocked out cold.

Peter woke up a couple of seconds later and immediately tried shooting webs at the plane to keep himself attached - it worked! For a second. The web came off almost immediately, but at least he had been pulled a little further out into the sea and had more of a chance. Maybe he wouldn't splat in front of everyone. As Peter fell towards the sea, he remembered something.

"Karen, gimme the parachute,"

"Initiating parachute. Mr. Stark has been notified and will be here in under 10 minutes."

Oh. Wait, under 10 minutes? Would he be here in time? Would the parachute even do anyth-

\----------

Peter smacked into the water and his ears were ringing. He was tangled up in the parachute. What an idiot - this had happened before, as well, and Peter hadn't even remembered! For a second the kid stopped thrashing in the water and thought... 'maybe I'm supposed to die here. Maybe I'm not made for Spider-Man... if I was, would I be in this much trouble all the time?' Peter stopped trying to escape the confines of the parachute wrapped around him, and stared up at the rippling surface of the water getting further and further away.

His chest felt like it was bursting and the urge to breathe kicked in. Peter pulled off his mask and took a giant breath in of salty seawater. He never thought drowning would really feel like this. Every inch of him felt like it was filled with water and as his body tried to cough it up automatically, he only ended up breathing in more. He wondered if this was what it felt like to take your helmet off in space where there's no oxygen. Then it hit him... Peter'll never see Aunt May again. Or Ned. Why had he been so angry with Ned on the intercom? He was helping him. His best friend. Underwater, Peter weakly mimed their handshake and smiled as his body contorted, still trying to get the water out and air in.

Too late.  
Too late.  
Too late.

Everything was black.

-

Too late. Iron Man was too late.

He had tracked Peter's location and found himself at the edge of the sea, on the beach, there was a commotion - some people asking for a photo with him, some telling him they thought they saw Spider-Man fall into the sea and not come out. Tony dived straight in.

Still using his tracker, he found Peter at least 60 metres down, floating peacefully on the waves, mask off, floppy hair floating around his pale face, coated in bubbles. Tony propelled himself towards the kid and hooked his hands under his armpits, yanking him out and into fresh air. As they shot off through the sky, Tony looked down at the boy in his arms.

"Why, Peter?" He asked him. He was more asking himself... why Peter? Why the kid he had sworn to protect only the night before? Why the kid that he treated like a son? Why this kid, who had smiled at him trustingly yesterday as he left the tower, believing Tony Stark was there to protect him? Why the kid who now hung unmoving in his arms?

They landed on a patch of grass with no one around. Tony lowered the kid's limp body carefully onto the grass and stepped out of his suit. He asked FRIDAY to run vitals. Peter had a concussion and had nearly drowned back there. Wait, was he breathing?

Tony tipped Peter's head back and listened. No breath.

Compressions. Yes. Mr. Stark started pressing both of his hands down on Peter's chest, then breathed life into his lungs. Repeat. Press, breathe, repeat. This cycle went over for at least 5 minutes until there was a response. A wet, sad sound came from Peter and he arched his back, vomiting water everywhere and spluttering, gulping as much air as possible. Tony sat back on his heels and looked at the boy. Spider-Man. The friendly neighbourhood Spider-Man. For a second, the two heroes made eye contact and spoke untold words between their eyes, in that moment. Peter collapsed into Tony's arms and cried.

"I'm sorry," he sobbed.

"You have nothing to be sorry for."

"I-I wasn't good enough. I'll never be good enough." Peter's voice cracked as he shook from the cold.

"No Peter, I wasn't good enough."  
Tony pulled Peter in close to him and ran his fingers through the kid's hair. He was just a kid. Not even 16 yet. Mr. Stark cupped Peter's face in his hands and looked at him, water dripping from his eyelashes. "I'm the one who should be apologising."

And no more was said after that. They sat on the grass, embracing each other, Peter's sobs eventually decreasing into shivers and Mr. Stark stroking his hair reassuringly.

Tony Stark made a promise that day, not only to Peter this time, but to himself. He would keep this kid safe at all costs. It was a promise. A vow.

He was there to pick up Peter's broken pieces and stitch him back together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Let me know what you thought of this chapter in the comments, and what you think will happen to Spider-Man next!


	4. Panic Alarm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter is still haunted by being attacked the other day, and he breaks down while patrolling with Tony.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ANGST ANGST ANGST  
> LOTS OF ANGST  
> Also - major cliffhanger at the end!  
> ~Thank you all again for your lovely comments and suggestions! I have re-read them over and over and it means so much to me. Thank you all!  
> I hope you enjoy chapter 4.

Peter returned home after the fight with Vulture soaking wet and aching, but safe.

Mr. Stark had dropped him off at home to make sure he was safe and had left without another word. Now, as Peter lay in bed, he thought back over the past week. First, he'd been shot and almost died in a fire, second, he'd been attacked on Tony Stark's floor, and nearly been killed, and thirdly, the Vulture had dropped him in the ocean and left him to drown. He remembered the fear and guilt in Tony's eyes as he held Peter tightly in his arms, stroking his wet hair out of his eyes, telling him that he would protect him and everything would be okay. 

And Peter believed him. 

So, here he was, at home again. The kid was determined that tomorrow was going to be a normal day.

-

"Peter! Time to get up honey," Aunt May called into Peter's room. The kid rolled over and looked at the time on his phone. What the... it was 11:00am! He should be at school! Practically falling out of bed, Peter scrambled out of his room and gaped at May.

"Don't worry sweetie. Mr. Stark told me you had a long night on the Internship yesterday - he said its best you keep the week off." May smiled sympathetically.

The WEEK off? Peter was Spider-Man. No way was he staying at home for a week.

"Uhh sure, I'll just... see you later." Peter ducked back into his room and shut the door. No offence to Mr. Stark, but Spider-Man was not one to stay inside. Pulling on his suit, he called to May saying he was taking a nap and not to disturb him.

Then he was gone.

-

Mr. Stark sat on the ground outside Peter's house, waiting.

"Woah!" Peter jumped when he almost stepped on Tony.

"Boo."

"What... what are you doing here?" Peter stuttered.

"Well, I didn't expect you to buy the 'staying at home for a week' thing, and I thought you'd decide to go out patrolling so... here I am."

Peter felt stupid and embarrassed as he hung his head between his shoulders.

"Hey kid, it's not so bad. I'll just tag along, okay?" Tony placed a reassuring hand on Peter's arm and guided him out onto the street. Mr. Stark could tell that Peter was being careful on his feet as he walked, still a little unsteady from yesterday, so Tony kept his hand on the kid's arm as a guide.

The two of them walked around for almost an hour until they saw a group of people crowding around something and as they neared the commotion, Peter saw it was a fight.

"We should probably step in," Peter suggested.

"Wait. If it's not serious, we can leave it." 

Peter could see that one guy was pinning another to the ground and punching him... the victim was clearly unresponsive but the attacker kept hitting him. Then as the man began to wake up, the attacker grabbed his throat and started to choke him.

While Peter watched the fight before him, he felt his own throat closing up as he remembered when he was attacked in Tony's living room. How it felt. The feeling of having no possible way to get oxygen into your lungs, someone slowly killing you, not being able to breathe... no air.. no air.. no air

"Peter?" Tony stood in front of the kid, waving a hand across his face. "You with me?" 

Peter couldn't take his eyes off the man on the ground, and before he knew it, he was knocking Tony out of the way and pushing his way through the crowd towards the fight. He grabbed the attacker by the collar and threw him at the wall, then punched him until he dropped to the floor.

He knelt on top of him and kept punching him. Again again again.  
His knuckles were bruised and his hands were covered in blood when he heard a shout and felt two strong arms hook under his armpits and yank him to his feet, then pull him into a back alley.

"Peter what the hell were you doing?" Mr. Stark yelled as he dragged the boy by the wrist until they were far enough from the crowd. Peter sank to the ground, pulling off his mask and flexing his knuckles. "You could have killed that man! That wasn't our job."

All Peter could do was try and even out his breathing. Turns out that attack he had been the victim of a few days ago had shaken him up a lot more than he originally thought.

"Look at me!" Tony turned Peter's face roughly towards his and stared into his eyes, and then all his anger was gone. All he could see behind Peter's dark eyes was a terrified kid. It wasn't his fault. Mr. Stark sighed and sat down on his heels in front of the boy. "I'm sorry Peter. I know what you went through was really tough and I shouldn't have shouted at you, okay?"

Peter didn't answer. He was still busy trying to push down the rising panic in his chest and calm down his breathing. It wasn't working. No way was he about to have a panic attack in front of Mr. Stark.

He could vaguely hear Tony calling his name but it sounded like he was underwater, and everything felt fuzzy... just like it did when-

Peter took a giant gulp of air but found he could no longer breathe. His limbs felt numb.

"Mr. Stark-"

"It's okay, it's okay, calm down. You're having a panic attack." Tony was rubbing Peter's shoulder, trying to bring him back.

"I can't... breathe..."

"Yes you can. Just follow after me. In.... out. Slowly."

Peter tried but it wasn't working. He couldn't feel his fingertips and it felt as though the world had been sucked of oxygen. Why? Every time he closed his eyes he pictured the man from the fire leaning over him, hands pressing down so hard on is throat he couldn't move or breathe. The kid pulled his knees into his chest but that only made him feel ten times worse. Everything was too much. Too much light. Too much air, but also too little air. His chest was aching. He felt lightheaded. Everything was closing in on him. Tears had started to roll down his cheeks.

Peter was slightly aware of being shifted in position, and leaning against something warm, with a strong hand pressing down on his chest, grounding him. Tony had been taught first aid and all the basics, so he knew how to deal with a panic attack, although this one was a hell of a lot more dangerous to Peter because of his enhanced senses - Peter could die from an attack this serious. Tony just prayed it wouldn't come to that. For now, he just had to make sure Peter stayed conscious.

"You can breathe, Peter. You're fine. You're right here in Queens, with me, Tony Stark. Iron Man. I've got you." Tony's voice brought Peter back to the present and his breathing began to slow and he calmed down.

"Oh my God," Peter hid his face in his hands, "I'm so sorry."

"What on Earth are you sorry for? This is a perfectly normal thing to happen after what you've been through," Tony replied, and pulled Peter closer to him as tears began to fall from the boy's eyes.

"I'm such a failure."

Peter's words hit Tony like a bullet in the chest.

"No, no no." Tony held Peter's face in his hand and wiped his tears away. "You are not a failure. You are Spider-Man. Look how many people you've saved, and-"

"I almost KILLED someone, Mr. Stark! That's not my job. I'm all wrong."

For the first time, Tony really looked at the teenager cradled in his arms. He was broken - he was just a kid and he'd already seen more than he should have. Sighing, Tony pulled Peter into a full embrace and rested his chin on his head, stroking the boy's back reassuringly as he shook with sobs.

He couldn't do this. He was too small and couldn't take the weight of the world. But Tony was the one who had brought him into this, and how could he pull him out now?

Suddenly, Peter went completely tense in Mr. Stark's arms, then completely limp and as Tony pulled back to look at him, he dropped onto the ground. Mr. Stark could see what looked like a dart sticking out of the side of his neck.

"What the..." Tony leaned over him, then scanned the area. He was about to call for backup when a gloved hand covered his mouth and dragged him away from Peter. Tony broke out of the unknown assailant's grip easily, only to be struck on the temple by the butt of a gun. He dropped to the ground, dizzy and seeing stars, and then felt something plunge into his neck. A syringe. Two seconds later, he was unable to move.

Tony Stark was dragged away from the boy on the floor, paralysed, only to watch as Peter was dragged in the opposite direction.

Then he blacked out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How's that for a cliffhanger?


	5. Remember Me

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Peter and Tony are held hostage by their kidnappers, but when the chance to escape comes up, only one of them will make it. Which one?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is very dramatic. I really hope you enjoy it!  
> ~As always, thank you for your comments and suggestions! The next chapter is the last one :D.

Tony Stark woke up on a cold, hard floor with a blinding headache. He tried to move but found he was tied up. From where he was, he took in his surroundings - a completely dark room, no furniture... nothing. It was completely empty except for Tony, and all he could hear was his own ragged breathing.

"Hello?" Tony croaked. His throat hurt. How long had he been out?

"Hello?" He said again, more desperately this time. What had happened? The last thing he remembered was being in the alley with Peter who was having a panic attack. Peter. Where was he?

Suddenly a door, that Tony hadn't noticed before, opened and a shaft of light fell into the room. Squinting, he tried to see what was outside.

"Mr. Stark, right?" An unknown voice said as a silhouetted figure stood in the doorway. "I'm Zack. Nice to meet you." Zack mimed shaking Tony's hand. "Now, I suppose you're wondering what we want with you. Well, if you haven't noticed..." he gestured to Tony's body and then he realised... he wasn't wearing his suit. How had he not noticed?

"What did you do with it?" Tony shouted. "What have you done with Peter? Where is he?" Tony tried to move in the ropes binding him to the wall but it was no use.

"Alright big boy, keep your hair on. We'll explain all of that in a minute. For now, you'll have to live with this comfy grey jumpsuit!" Zack pointed and laughed at what he had dressed Tony in while he was unconscious.

"Oh, and your little friend..." Zack continued, "quite a fighter, that one. Jackson here," Zack gestured to his companion who stepped out of the shadows, "took quite a beating from that kid. Teenagers these days, right?"

Tony didn't waver. He sat there staring straight ahead of him - what the hell had gotten into him? Iron Man. Kidnapped. This wasn't supposed to happen.

"Anyways!" Zack clapped his hands together loudly, making Tony flinch, "I thought, seeing as you'll be staying here for the rest of the week, you might want some company. Jackson, bring Iron Man into the lounge.

Tony prayed that he would be taken to Peter, and that he was okay. He could feel his bindings being loosened, and a gun pressed into his back. He knew better than to fight right now - he didn't want to risk being shot. After a few minutes of walking, the door to the 'lounge' was opened and Tony was shoved in roughly. This room was almost identical to the other, but instead of a ceiling it had an enormous window with what looked like water above it.

"Have fun, Tony Stark." Jackson laughed as he re-handcuffed Tony and shut the door behind him. A second later some wall lights were switched on and he could see Peter cowering in the opposite corner.

"M-mr. Stark?" A small voice came out of the corner after a few seconds. 

"Peter, oh my God." Tony was beyond relieved when he heard the teenager's voice from across the room.

"Where are you?"

Tony ignored the question. "Are you hurt?"

"N-no, are you?"

"No."

There was a long period of silence.

"I lied." Peter said.

"About what?"

"He shot me." 

Tony's heart skipped a beat and he tried to get to his feet, although he was off-balance because of the cuffs on his hands.

"Where did he shoot you, Peter?"

"I-I don't know, I can't s-see anything... I think I'm blind,"

As Tony got nearer to the boy, he could see a bloodied, swollen and bruised gash on his head and a bullet wound on his hip.

"It's okay, you're not blind. It's just the blood from your head wound running into your eyes. Once it's out you'll be able to see just fine, don't worry though - it's a common mistake."

"I look forward to being able to see again." Peter smiled strangely, and Tony could see something hidden behind that smile. Not anger... not even sadness. It just looked empty.

Tony sat down in front of him, and nudged his leg with his shoe to reassure him he was here.

"The bullet wound doesn't seem too deep - it's just an average pistol wound and it doesn't look like it hit any major arteries. You should be okay for now. It's more the head wound that I'm worried about."

"I'll be fine, Mr. Ssstark." Peter slurred. Definite signs of a concussion. The kid rubbed his eyes on one shoulder. "Oh look! I can see!" He shouted as Tony's worried face came into focus. He looked into the kid's bloodshot eyes.

"I'm really sorry Peter. I brought you into this. I should never have done that in the first place... you're just a kid, and-" Tony stopped short when he saw Peter looking over his shoulder at something behind him. Slowly, Mr. Stark turned to face whatever was distracting the kid and it took him a while to notice it.

"Drip, drop, drip, drop, drip, drop..." Peter whispered and then Tony realised. The giant water tank on top of them had the tiniest crack in it, and miniature balls of water were falling from it.

"Oh no."

"I dunno why they'd even put that there. Stupid, rrright? Who'd want a water tank for a-a ceiling? W-what if it jusst broke," Peter sounded drunk. The two men had said he'd put up a fight, and Tony wanted to murder them for hurting the kid. 

"We need to find a way out of here."

"Will thisss h-help?" Peter suggested and swivelled in position to show Mr. Stark that he was holding a toothpick.

"Peter where did you get that? It's perfect."

"The stupid fuckers who c-chucked me in here thought thhhey were cool chewing o-on toothpickss, but turns out they're not s-so cool when they ssspit them out next to me b-by accident." Peter said tiredly and let his head fall back against the wall, out of breath. It seemed to be taking great effort for him to say a full sentence.

"Peter, you're a genius." Tony encouraged. "Turn around and sit with your back to mine, and we can try to unpick the handcuffs."

Peter didn't respond. He had obviously lost a lot of blood and it was affecting his reaction time. 

"Kid, wake up. I know how much you want to sleep right now, but we haven't got much time," then a pause. "Please, Peter."

The boy pulled himself forwards and turned around.

"Great. Pass me the toothpick and I'll unlock yours first, then you do mine. Okay?"

"Okay."

After five minutes, Peter's cuffs broke off and he flexed his bruised wrists. Then, taking the pick from Tony, he attempted to unlock his.

Suddenly, voices could be heard from outside. Shit. Peter quickly sat back on the floor and hung his head between his shoulders, pinning his arms behind his back to look like he was cuffed. Hopefully the idiots would buy it.

The door cracked open.

"Hello, boys." Zack said, and walked in. "I'm afraid that-" he was cut off as Peter leapt to his feet and kicked Zack's legs out from under him, then knocked him out cold. The sudden action had dizzied Peter even more and he stumbled into the wall. He felt like he was about to throw up.

"Quick," he slurred, and picked up the pick to unlock Tony's handcuffs. It was done in a matter of minutes. Then Mr. Stark was on his feet, hooking an arm around Peter's shoulder to keep him upright, and starting towards to door.

"Wow. You two are quite the pair." Jackson stepped out from around the corner, wearing the Spider-Man suit. "Looks like we made a mistake putting you into a room together." Jackson used Peter's web shooters to pull Zack, who was still unconscious, towards him and then out of the room. 

"Your c-ceiling is broken." Peter said in a monotone voice.

"Well, duh. I know. It's part of the fun to see you freak out, then slowly drown. Dumbass." Jackson shot a web at the door to shut it straight in there faces. The slam had shaken the building, and the crack in the ceiling grew.

Tony looked at Peter who turned slowly to look back at him.

"Mr. Stark?" The kid said, voice suddenly strong.

"Yes?"

"Don't forget me." Then, as if in slow motion, the ceiling came crashing down behind them and Peter used the last of his web fluid in the web shooter he had hidden under his sleeve to yank open the door and shove Tony out into safety. Before Mr. Stark could think, he was on the other side of the door, watching as it shut again. Peter behind it, his bloodied face and watery eyes staring out at him, fists clenched and standing in a fight stance, broken glass and water cascading and splashing down behind him.

Then the door shut and Peter was gone.

-

"No!" Tony yelled and started banging on the door. Using all his remaining strength in an attempt to knock the door down. He kept shouting and shouting Peter's name, in a hope that the silence on the other side of the door would be broken. "Please! Peter answer me!" Tony Stark yelled until he couldn't anymore, and his voice was gone. Then he kept throwing himself at the door to get it open. 

Jackson then appeared behind Tony, a twisted grin on his face, and struck Tony on the side of the head with a gun.

 

\---------

 

Mr. Stark woke up in a white hospital room, eyes burning. His head hurt like hell and he couldn't remember how he got here.

Happy walked into the room and sat next to him with one of those annoyingly sympathetic facial expressions.

"What." Tony croaked.

"Good-morning, sunshine." Happy smiled. "Those guys, what was it... Jack and Zackson? I dunno. Well they're locked up now, we got your call from a few hours before they got you, and tracked you there." Happy said cautiously. "How are you feeling?"

"I don't know. I can't remember anything. All I know is that my head hurts like a bitch and I feel like something went wrong."

"Hm. Okay. I'll call the nurse to take a further look at your head in a second. You really don't remember anything at all?" Happy looked genuinely concerned, his eyes looking slightly watery. 

Something about those eyes triggered Tony's memory, and then it all came flooding back.  
Being kidnapped.  
Breaking free.  
Peter saving Tony's life in the blink of an eye.

Tony jolted upright and tried to get out of the bed.

"Woah. It's alright, calm down. I suppose it's all coming back now, right?" Happy reassured him.

"The kid. Where is he? Where's Peter?" Tony was starting to panic.

"He's next door."

Tony was sure his heart almost fell out of his ass. He's next door. Which means he was saved. Which means he's okay.

"When can I see him?"

\---

Three hours later, Tony was sitting next to Peter's hospital bed once again, reading a stupid magazine, filling out one of the easy crosswords as he waited for the kid to wake up.

After a while he felt eyes on him, and he glanced up to see Peter watching him intently.

"Caravan." Peter said suddenly.

"What?" Tony asked. Oh no. Had he got brain damage?

"Caravan. Four down." Peter pointed to the crossword and Tony filled out the answer Peter had given him then placed the magazine on a table.

"Thanks kid."

"Anytime."

"No. I really mean it. You shouldn't have tried to save my life... you are so much more important than me. You have so much more potential." Tony spoke softly as he looked at the frail boy. "But thank you."

They didn't speak again for the rest of the day, but each other's company was enough.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> !!!!!!!!!!  
>  Because the next chapter is the last, here is a short preview:
> 
>  
> 
> \---The last thing Tony heard was Peter speaking in an anguished voice; "Thank you, Mr. Stark. Thank you for everything."---


	6. The Final Step

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony has protected Peter from the world so many times, but can he save him from himself?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> !!! IMPORTANT NOTES !!!  
>  PLEASE READ THESE.  
> \---->This chapter has a suicide trigger warning. I thought I should make that clear, it is not graphic or extremely detailed but if you are triggered by suicidal thoughts etc then I recommend not reading this.  
> ~~As you probably know, this is the last chapter in this fic. If you want to read more from me that's like this, I will be starting a new fic very soon (like tomorrow) which will consist of more chapters, and also longer chapters. So yeah.  
>  Thank you!

It was three weeks since Peter and Tony had been kidnapped.

So far, everything had been normal. No more scary attacks, no more life-changing injuries... it was almost weird to get through a day without feeling some kind of physical pain.

Since the moment back in the place they were held hostage, when Peter had made that in-the-moment decision to save Tony's life instead of his own, everything had felt different. For both of them. It had shown Tony how much worth his life actually had, but it had shown Peter how little he actually cared whether he lived or died.

-

It was Friday. The sky was dark and clouds grey, threatening to spill.

"H-hi Mr. Stark." Peter's voice cracked as Mr. Stark answered the incoming phone call.

"Hi kiddo. Uh... now's not really the time, alright? Can I call you back later?"

"Ok."

"Is everything alri-"

Peter ended the call before Tony could finish without hesitation. That was all he needed. That answered his only question. Making his way slowly to the edge of the cliff, Peter kept going over and over everything that had happened. He had nearly been killed so many times. Too many times. Seeing Tony breaking down over him was enough to drive him crazy. He wanted to be strong, but he would never be anything more than just a stupid teenager. He didn't want to be a burden anymore.

He was nearing the edge.

One step closer. You're not meant to be a hero. 

Two steps closer. The world would be better off without you.

Three steps closer. You're hurting everyone you love.

Four steps closer. You want to jump.

Final step, feet on the edge, ground crumbling away beneath him. Do it. 

The kid took his last step and plummeted downwards.

 

Crashing into trees and branches as he fell, cutting his face and ripping holes in his suit. He could see the forest floor getting nearer. For some reason he wasn't afraid. Almost there now...

Smack.

\----

 

Tony sat at home. He was still curious about what Peter had called him for at this time of night... although he was too busy for anything that wasn't important. Besides, Karen would have told him if Peter was in any danger, right?

Right?

Sighing, he picked up his phone and called Peter back. No answer, so he left a message.

"Hey kid. Sorry if I sounded rude earlier - I'm pretty busy right now. Is everything okay?"

Ten minutes later he tried calling him again. Then Aunt May. Then he found Ned's number and called him. No one knew where Peter Parker was.

"Show me the footage from the suit." Tony loudly requested, and a screen popped up in front of him, saying it would show footage from the past thirty minutes.

Okay, that would do.

Tony could see that Peter was walking. Slowly. Like he was hurt, but he wasn't because he would have been alerted. Tony leaned forward in his seat and sped up the video until he saw Peter dial his number and lift the phone to his ear. He heard his own voice telling Peter he was too busy to talk. Mr. Stark's heart sank as he saw Peter end the call and drop his phone to the floor, then walk over to the edge of a cliff.

"No, Peter don't you fucking dare." Tony said aloud, even though he already knew it was too late. After a few seconds, Peter stepped off the edge and let himself freefall.

As Tony watched the trees whipping at the camera, hearing Peter's breathing get faster and faster as he neared the ground, he thought he was going to throw up.

Why?

He flinched as the boy hit the ground with a sickening crack, and the camera started to go static as it broke from the pressure. The last thing he heard was Peter saying in an anguished voice, "Thank you, Mr. Stark, for everything." The video fuzzed out first, leaving Tony to hear the kid's uneven breathing and whimpers of pain. Then the audio was finished.  
Peter had known Tony wouldn't answer the call. He had known he would watch the suit footage. 

"Footage from Peter Parker's suit is finished." He was notified, but he didn't listen. Reality wasn't registering. He was staring at the static on the screen, mouth hanging open.

Then he was out the door. Using what was left of Peter's tracker to track him down to the middle of a forest on the outskirts of Queens.

He lowered himself to the ground, where he could see Peter's broken body lying, unmoving. He felt a lump rising in his throat as he walked towards him.

"Kid?" His voice broke as he turned the boy over with a hand on his shoulder. He carefully pulled his mask off and sucked in a breath as he looked at Peter's battered face. His lip was split and swollen, dried blood all across his face. He had a clearly broken jaw and nose, and a defiant cut down the side of his face. Tenderly, Tony brushed his hand over the wounds - the blood was still damp.

"Oh, kid." Tony used a pocket knife to carefully cut Peter's suit off him, then peeled it off slowly. He could see the whole of his torso was bruised and swollen, an enormous gash covering the right side of his body. Tony thought he was about to be sick. 

"F-FRIDAY, run v-vitals.." his voice was shaking and tears were threatening to spill.

He was told that all the wounds Spider-Man suffered from were fatal, and there was no coming back from. Mr. Stark held a hand over his mouth as he sobbed, trying to hold himself together. He gently picked the broken teenager up into his arms and brushed his fingers through his hair, telling him he was sorry, so sorry, over and over. He felt so small, so... fragile. Like he could just snap at any second.

All these times he'd protected Peter from the world, but he couldn't even save him from himself.

Everything felt hazy... like he was dreaming. God, how he wished he was dreaming. But this was real life. Pollen and leaves fell from the trees around Tony Stark and Peter Parker, strong arms wrapped around his small frame, shielding him.

Tony Stark made a promise that day. Not just to Peter, but to himself.

He would never let go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for reading this fic! I never expected it to do this well! :D <3  
> And as I said in the notes at the start, I will be starting a new fic soon on this account which will be very similar, but will consist of more (and longer) chapters.


	7. THANK YOU!

This isn’t an actual addition to the fic ahaha but I just wanted to say thank you!!! Getting 10k reads isn’t much compared to some stuff but for me that’s literally insane. Especially considering this is the first fic I ever wrote... idk if anyone will read this, or even care lmfao, but thank you all so much for 10k reads and this might seem lame but I’m literally dancing rn. I’m so happy.

I love you!!!

 

..- you can also check out my other fics on my account if you liked this one <3

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed it. be sure to leave your opinions in the comments.  
> :D


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